Amounting to a Lot More than a Hill of Beans

STARKVILLE, MS- Courtesy of MSU and Emily Daniels

Eric Hill, director of Mississippi State University’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach, is a long-time entrepreneur who uses his position to help community members of like minds to realize their own dreams. He started out in Louisiana providing computer solutions for small businesses, and soon branched out, helping beauty pageant organizations to create and manage their voting platforms. He later obtained a degree in industrial engineering from MSU, where he continued along these lines, even producing an app called SportSnax, which allows sports fans to order concessions right from their seats in the stadium; the app is now in use at LSU, Bama, and MSU’s stadiums.

As his knowledge and reputation grew, he “I learned of a coordinator position opening to support entrepreneurship and technology transfer,” Hill said. “I thought it would be a perfect opportunity for me to help other entrepreneurs while helping test SportSnax’s feature rollout at Dudy Noble and Humphrey Coliseum on the side. The startup grew but never really did reach critical mass. In parallel, Gerald Nelson, who is basically the grandfather of MSU entrepreneurship, retired shortly after. Caring for entrepreneurship at MSU basically fell to me.”

“There’s more support now than there’s ever been for entrepreneurship,” Hill went on to say. “We impact students from across the entire campus by trying to make them millionaires and create jobs for others. That’s the goal, and there are now multiple examples of that. We don’t want students having to leave to go be part of the future. We want them to create the future here.”

Please click here for the original article: https://www.msstate.edu/our-people/2023/06/eric-hill

image credit: Megan Bean

How Much Wood Would a Woodchuck Chuck…

NOXUBEE COUNTY, MS – Courtesy of Scott Boyd and the Macon Beacon

Charlotte, N.C.-based Huber Engineered Woods has been in discussions with the Noxubee County BoS and others with regards to a potential purchase of land just North of Shuqualak. The economic impact of one of their factories could be a significant one for the county and its worker base. There have been some developments over the last year and a half or so which seem to suggest that site prep has been seriously considered, such as a plan announced by the BoS to secure a $6.6 million loan to be used for purposes such as access road building, water, and sewerage. An announcement is anticipated soon, though no formal statement on the matter has been made by HEW.

The company produces oriented strand board (“OSB”), which is a strong wood product used for residential and commercial building floor supports. They primarily use pulpwood pine timber as a material for their products, which could open up a market for local timber sellers.

Please click here for the original article: https://www.facebook.com/scott.boyd.58173/posts/pfbid0Ke8GCbEKmLCRSJLNzoq4Sck5VmAuyd5VJJfwAaofmeop3VYUzZsdKMNp9XUeQMTDl

Raising the Roof and Raising Job Prospects in the GTR

WEST POINT, MS – Courtesy of the Dispatch and Grant McLaughlin

Jay McCord, roofing instructor, recently spoke about the GAF GAF (General Aniline and Film Roofing) Academy program, which has been working with local roofing companies since 2019 to try to help them find qualified workers, as there has been a decline in their labor market in the past few years. Now, they are working hand-in-hand with Graham Roofing to help to train new workers in the field and help them to get jobs: “There’s not nearly enough young guys to come in, step up and take those roles over and to have those skills that are super valuable,” McCord said. “Everybody needs a roof. If your roofs are leaking, you have to get it fixed. So there’s always going to be a need for it.” An average entry-level salary is around $25K, and median pay for an experienced worker is more like $45K.

The training begins with a 3-day intensive program that includes construction techniques and safety lessons, which serve as a basis to expand one’s skills; companies will often offer and even pay for additional training in both areas. President and CEO Christee Holbrook said: “This is the stuff we look for — to partner with people on how to recruit into our industry — and what GAF is doing is amazing for contractors like us.”

The program itself is not only free – it offers a stipend to students, paying them to attend the training and earn the certification.

Please click here for the original article: https://cdispatch.com/news/2023-06-02/training-program-prepares-new-class-for-jobs-in-commercial-roofing/

Hungry for Hibachi? An Update on the New Location

GOLDEN TRIANGLE REGION, MS – Courtesy of the Dispatch and Grant McLaughlin

COLUMBUS

Hibachi Buffet, late of Leigh Mall, has some news for hungry diners. They have nearly completed their remodeling work inside the old Ryan’s building at 1201 Hwy 45 S, and will soon be working on the exterior and signage. The main thing they’re still waiting on is furniture needed for the interior, which has been tied up in shipping delays. Their original plan was to open this month, but they’re currently looking at July: “We are still in the remodel, and when we open we will put it out with a post on Facebook,” owner Angela Hu said.

Rook’s Wine Cellar, 2118 Hwy. 45 N., is going out of business, and is offering a 25% to 30% sale on all items in the store; their last day will be this Saturday. “I’m 65 and we had a good run,” owner Mike Rooker said. “I appreciate all the customers, but it’s just time to do something else.”

STARKVILLE

Umble Coffee Co. will soon be opening its doors at 216 Industrial Park Road, near the Oktibbeha County Safe Room, per owner Kenneth Thomas. The business has been doing well since 2017, when it got its start as an online coffee roaster: “We have doubled our production volume every year since 2017. It just keeps going up,” Thomas said. “We wanted to have a coffee shop front to be able to showcase our coffee. But also it’s really important for us to be a place where the community can gather, because for Umble, we’re not here if we’re not people focused.” He feels that it is now time to move to a larger facility and add a brick & mortar shop so he can also sell his fine beans to more customers.

He also plans to allow for tours of the roasting facility, or simply relax and take a walk on their trail out back: “People who come to the coffee shop will be able to see the inner workings of the actual coffee production itself,” he said. “Probably not right out of the gate, but eventually, we’ll probably set up for what I call eco tours, which are like Saturday mornings where we run you through this. Just like if you went to Nashville and went to a microbrewery or distillery, and they walk you through the process.” Their plan is to open on June 2nd.

Please click here for the original article: https://cdispatch.com/news/2023-05-25/goings-on-with-grant-umble-coffee-opening-june-2-in-starkville/

SDI Looking to Purchase Land for Port Use

LOWNDES COUNTY, Miss. – Courtesy of the Dispatch and Grant McLaughlin

Steel Dynamics Incorporated has expressed their intention to purchase a 90-acre section along the Lowndes County Port Authority’s East Bank. They are a current customer of the East Bank, and, if successful, this project is projected to move some operations to this new area, even as SDI continues to utilize existing East Bank port services.

“As SDI grows, they are going to undoubtedly have the need to bring in and ship out more products via the waterway,” Golden Triangle Development LINK CEO Joe Max Higgins said. “We’ve got a design of additional rail spurs that could serve the property that could allow them to load from barge to train and train to barge there. . . We’ve got conceptual layouts and cost estimates and how we would do it there.”

The proposed purchase price has not yet been disclosed.

LCPA Board Attorney John Crowell commented: “I think we’re real close to getting it tied down . . . But we don’t have a final document to execute at this point. I hope to in the near future.”

Please click here for the original article: https://cdispatch.com/news/2023-05-20/sdi-aims-to-purchase-90-acres-of-port-land/

Collaboration with Liquid Wire Announced

LOWNDES COUNTY, Miss. – Courtesy of WCBI

MSU, Toyota Mississippi, and Liquid Wire Inc. will soon be working together to bring the latter’s wearable circuitry technology to the workplace. LW’s products, which are also used in the medical field, consist primarily of flexible monitoring equipment that can be imprinted upon clothing to allow for remote monitoring of workers, patients, etc, so as to apprise risks to their joints and safety, so that safety problems can be addressed, reduce workplace injuries as a result of repetitive stress, and so on. The announcement was made at MSU’s Athlete Engineering Summit, held at EMCC.

“Train the next generation of workers . . . You think about in a workplace where repetitive motions industry and carpal tunnel and all these and what the engineering research is finding is that you can help people avoid these injuries by workarounds and being in shape and exercising,” said Scott Alsobrooks, EMCC President.

Please click here for the original article: https://www.wcbi.com/msu-toyota-mississippi-liquid-wire-inc-announce-collaboration-project/

Leigh Mall Getting a New Look, Name

COLUMBUS, MS – Courtesy of the Dispatch and Grant McLaughlin

Hull Property Group Vice President of Government Relations John Mulherin has announced that they will be renaming the old Leigh Mall to “Columbus Place” as part of an ongoing effort to revamp the structure & parking lot, as well as attract new businesses to the location. He stated that “One of the things that we’re doing is transforming the property . . . Certainly, a name change is in alignment with that because it’s just not a mall anymore. It’s going to be an outward-facing power center. So, the thought was while we’re transforming the look and feel, the name change is appropriate as well.”

He went on to say that interior demolitions of the old Zales, JCPenney and Books-A-Million are done, while exterior work has already been underway for some time on the outside face of the mall. Work on the facade is anticipated for completion in late Summer. Infrastructure and parking lot improvements are next on the list. “We should have it certainly buttoned up before we get into the Black Friday and holiday shopping season,” Mulherin said. “That’s our goal.”

“It’s the business that we’re in,” he said. “We loved the property. We love real estate. We love the community. We think there’s really no such thing as bad property, it’s only bad stewardship of property, and we certainly consider ourselves good stewards of property. As a good steward, you have to invest in your property.”

Please click here for the original article: https://cdispatch.com/news/2023-04-27/goodbye-leigh-mall-hello-columbus-place/

Forever FORGEing Ahead!

COLUMBUS, MS – Courtesy of the Dispatch

Melinda Lowe recently retired from an 18-year career as a Columbus school and college administrator to take on a new, much larger role: as the first-ever Executive Director of the FORGE Foundation, a coalition made up of GTR-area construction companies who want to help local students get the training they need for future jobs in the industry. The group also forges links between the companies and area schools, in part, by arranging for special events. “I have experience and connections with educators and school districts all across the state,” Lowe said. “… Working together, we can now approach opportunities in a better manner.”

She went on to say, “Right now, our focus is helping and supporting northeast Mississippi and what that looks like.” She and others are working hard to expand the program’s reach, and they have their sights set on new chapters in cities such as Tupelo.

Please click here for the original article: https://cdispatch.com/news/2023-04-26/first-forge-director-looks-to-expand-workforce-development/

I Want I Candy

GOLDEN TRIANGLE AREA, MS – Courtesy of the Dispatch and Grant McLaughlin

WEST POINT

Shaneshia Davidson, owner of the I Candy Craft Bar, will be holding a grand opening this Friday at her new location at 463 Commerce St. The business began online, but she transitioned to a physical store last year; she moved to the current location in January of this year. The move has yielded dividends in the form of increased visibility and commerce: “It’s better as far as getting more business,” Davidson said. “Where it was located (before) wasn’t like a common area where people would just find me on their own. Where I am now has a higher traffic volume, especially being right next to the bank.”

STARKVILLE

The good folks over at Buff City Soap at 661 Hwy. 12 W. are growing ever closer to their grand opening on April 16. They are located right next to ALDI, and they will be offering free soap samples Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. They will be offering a wide variety of handmade specialty soaps for men and women, bath bombs, and more, with choices such as Island Nectar, Raspberry Vanilla, Cherry Almond, Sour Candy, and many more scents.

COLUMBUS

The 509 Main Street location of Gon Thai will be closing temporarily as they prepare to be taken over by new management. Owner Kannika Vonghan said, “The Main Street location is, I feel, like my home. I’ve been doing that for 12 years. So, I don’t want to let it go to something else, and [new manager Mark Kenner] wants it to continue as a Thai restaurant.” The CAFB location will remain open under current management.

Rook’s Wine Cellar 2118 Hwy. 45 N. is having a big sale. Owner Mike Rooker has announced that he is planning to sell the shop: “Right now, everything’s 15 percent off and I’m trying to sell as much as I can . . . I’m trying to get rid of as much inventory as possible. I don’t want to take it home.” He has been running the shop since 2007, and he wants to focus more on his profession as a financial advisor.

Please click here for the original article: https://cdispatch.com/news/2023-03-30/goings-on-with-grant-gon-thai-closed-new-management-coming-soon/

Area Sales Tax Revenues are Looking Up!

GOLDEN TRIANGLE AREA, MS – Courtesy of the Dispatch

Sales tax revenues are up by about 10% year-over-year for Columbus and Starkville; West Point has seen an increase of nearly 7% over the same time period. People are out there shopping and contributing to their local economies in the process.

“Fiscally, we are in a much better position than we were this time last year,” Columbus Mayor Keith Gaskin said. “I attribute that to new businesses, retail and restaurants that have opened in the area. I think a lot of people who drive in from around the Golden Triangle and outside enjoy what we have here in Columbus. I think we’re on the right path and will continue to see these numbers increase as we work very hard to bring more business and retail into the area.”

Mayor Lynn Spruill of Starkville said, “I think part of it is that people are still coming into town for our new shopping area that opened near the end of last year (Triangle Crossing). . . So I think that as well as the fact that we are just, we’re growing in popularity as a place to do business and to come in and eat and enjoy the different fare that we have.”

Triangle Crossing Shopping Center opened at 601 Hwy 12 W. in November. It features stores such as ALDI, Ulta Beauty, and Marhshalls.

Please click here for the original article: https://cdispatch.com/news/2023-03-20/columbus-starkville-see-sales-tax-revenue-jump-10-percent/